Barbara Zorn, PhD

Dr. Barbara Zorn brings more than 30 years of experience in business and educational leadership to the online graduate programs in the Global College of Integrative Learning at the University of Arizona Global Campus (UAGC). Her pioneering work in online commodity trading evolved into a career of service focused on transforming the higher education landscape by delivering innovative, yet practical learning opportunities to ambitious students.

Dr. Zorn’s career is marked by many firsts, including the brokerage management of the first 24-hour online global commodity trading system (Globex) and the development of the first online Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Biology. The UAGC graduate programs represent another milestone—the first set of online doctoral degrees to balance a culture of care with the driving force of economic return for students through the acquisition of high-demand skills.

Since joining the University in 2011, Dr. Zorn has served in multiple leadership roles, including Associate Dean, Associate Director of Graduate Research, Department Chair, Program Chair, and Professor. She has received numerous grants, fellowships, and awards, including a teaching fellowship from the U.S. National Science Foundation to improve math and science education in the Chicago Public School system. In 2019, she received the “Best in Class” Research Award at the National Online Learning Consortium Conference for her work in Big Data Analytics.

Prior to joining UAGC, Dr. Zorn served as a faculty lecturer and thesis advisor for the M.S. in Plant Biology and Conservation program at Northwestern University. She holds a Ph.D. in Biological Sciences from the University of Illinois, Chicago, and a B.A. in Environmental Studies from Lake Forest College.

Her publications are available on Google Scholar.